worried about my chick

[PrestonSloan08]

why is my chicks butt nasty? is this a bad thing?

 

[Wildflower_VA]

Yes, that is a bad thing. You need to get the dried on poo off with a warm, wet paper towel. You might have to put the little chick's butt down in a bowl of warm water to get it clean. She can die from having pasty butt.

 

[PrestonSloan08]

after i clean it will she be ok?

 

[1 hen and 1 roo]

We have found that butt paste is a normal thing for very young chicks. In most cases, cleaning it off does the trick but in some cases if not found early enough it could cause them to die. I guess they get poisons not getting it out. Like Wildflower said get a warm cloth/paper towel and get it moistened and get it off of them. May need to soak it in warm water to get it off. You may end up pulling some fluff out as well. Watch them afterwards as they may start to peck each other on the bottom from if they loose fluff. Don't want them to start eating each other.
Check them daily for a few weeks. Shouldn't last long and then they should stop having the paste.
Now in some rare cases, the paste is an indication of a disease but if you are not seeing death throughout I am sure it is simply butt paste and needs to be cleaned off.
Good luck and enjoy them!

 

[Wildflower_VA]

Quote:
You will have to clean her off several times a day until she stops pasting up. Giving the chicks some play sand in the brooder helps a lot.

 

[CatDaddyAlbert]

You need to check her, and any other chicks you have EVERY DAY.

A lot of times pasty butt comes from changing their food or having the temp too high in the brooder. 95 degrees in the brooder should be fine but if it spikes the poo dries right when it comes out.

Good Luck

 

[CupOJoe42]

After you clean the chick's butt (till the vent is clean and "winking") you can apply some olive oil to the area with a Q-Tip to keep the poo from sticking.